Dancing in the Vines
by ezyl
Summary: The vines were rushing forward, their thin tines wrapping around her wings and her down and her talons...it was beautiful, all of it, and yet oddly-horrifying. Moonlight Pair.
1. The Vines

She loved the vines of the Great Ga'Hoole Tree. They way they swayed to the pounding rhythm of the wind enchanted her. The movement of the vines sounded like heartbeats to her ear slits. But, most of all, she loved to soar through the trembling ropes, while feeling a somewhat tingly sensation in her gizzard.

She flew through them, every day in the light, while no one was watching, for she was known to be a stern ryb of the tree, and obviously she doubted her colleagues would think this of her nature. They might think she was yoicks. Queer, perhaps. But the first time she had arrived (on a day during the golden rain), when she had set her eyes upon this tree for the first time in her life, she knew that there was a powerful aura of…of _goodness._ It was this goodness that she drew her forward, this goodness, which seemed to emanate off these very vines. It was extremely unnerving that no one else felt this pull towards it. Maybe Strix Emerilla, the renowned weathertrix of the last century (whom she was distantly related to) had these skills too. One can always wonder…

_Perhaps I am like Bubo,_ she had thought. For, indeed, the blacksmith of the great tree seemed to feel this same attraction towards the deep metals that he forged.

Perhaps this was also the reason why she had never found a mate. She was too connected to the vines of the tree to feel ever a connection to another owl. Though (in her earlier years) she had flivved with a few other Spotted Owls, she had never felt a connection as powerful to them as to this tree.

She, indeed, was infatuated.

He was also infatuated. Not with the vines, though. But with an owl. An owl unlike any other. And along with this infatuation there came pain. For he knew (it was quite plain to see) that it was wishful thinking. For Otulissa never mated. She hadn't flivved in about two years.

So he was obviously surprised that such a prim and proper owl was found flying through the vines and shrieking with glee at this time in the morning. She was flying like he had never seen her fly. Like a shooting star that whipped softly through the air as if it were on fire (though she obviously wasn't), like a slight breeze that had flown bravely with the katabats, like a beautiful gossamer shadow that surrounded the evening sky…

He turned back from his window and fell asleep.


	2. Daily Visitations

Tweener time was the most enjoyable time at the Great Ga'Hoole tree. Owls tend to become really exuberant once they get out of their nests for the night. In the dining hollow, everyone was immensely enjoying themselves, either tearing up roasted voles or chewing on milkberry biscuits. There was some light chatter among the young'uns and some wet poop jokes shared (secretly) within the older groups.

If Otulissa had been there, she would've immediately told the owls off for mentioning such "crude" jokes at the tables, and have given each one a flint mop.

But of course she wasn't there. She had spent the whole day flying outside, and was dead tired. Currently, she was snuggled up in her moss-lined nest and dreaming.

_She was dreaming about two beautifully entwined figures, shrouded by a veil of dense, foggy air. Or was it the vines? They seemed very similar. Perhaps it _was_ the vines. _

_The dream evaporated. It was replaced by the smell of fresh milkberries that she was so familiar with now. She was flying through the vines_, her_ vines now, and she had that wonderful feeling in her gizzard again…the swooping sensation…and then, a sonorous hoot that resembled a great grey's. Who was it? The voice sounded dreadfully familiar… _

The time of the moon had went and gone. And as the moon disappeared, the sun rose high. And when the sun rose high, a spotted owl rose together in the sky with it. She was intent on flying through her beloved vines again…

She spun…she twirled…she managed a two-step glauc-glauc-glauc…and all this time, the silvery ropes of vine surrounded her, casting lovely multi-colored crystals upon her spotted feathers. The wonderful exhilaration filled her gizzard again. She trembled with joy at the sight of the vines dancing with her, keeping the beat to the soft _wuff_ sound of her wings.

She was one with the vines.

And, because she was filled to the brim with such joy, she didn't notice that she was being watched.


	3. Attack

Blustery day. Salty air. Storm clouds overhead. In other words, the weather chaw was out and about.

Veterans of the old weather chaw were out flying today, and Otulissa never felt better as she shot through the wind.

"AIEEE!" she shrieked as she dove through the baggywrinkles, twisting around to see if anyone else was behind her. Soren, the weather chaw captain, was. And he was grinning. Grinning as he soared past her and flew upside-down. She gasped. _I'll never get used to this._ She thought to herself.

Flying forward to catch up with Soren (while getting splattered with fragments of a particularly soggy meatball in the process), Otulissa swept her eyes with her third eyelid and flew straight for the gutter. She was hooting in delight.

Then, something peculiar appeared. In front of her, Soren screeched to a stop, hovering in midair. He was triangulating, shifting his head in minute movements to pinpoint the precise sound he had caught. Something seemed amiss…

"What is it?" Otulissa whispered, hovering close to him. The winds were buffeting the pair towards the edge of the gutter, but none of them seemed to notice.

The other members had begun to gather around them, all curious about what Soren was hearing. In turn, they began to ask questions.

"Hey, Soren? What's going on?" Ruby spoke.

"Shhh! I think he's trying to figure that out!" Martin squeaked. The little Northern Saw-Whet seemed to diminish in size as her began to wilf.

They watched as Soren listened for the source of whatever he was hearing, all craning their ear slits for any noises.

Otulissa watched in silence as he twisted his head in peculiar angles.

Finally, he resurfaced from triangulating.

"Crows," he whispered hoarsely.

Immediately a cloud of chatter rose.

"Crows? But they wouldn't dare fly through this muck!"

"Even some of us Ga'Hoole owls won't fly through it!"

Otulissa felt like she was in an odd dream. Finally, coming to her senses, she shreed, "Well, what are you waiting for? Fly!"

And the chaw scattered. In a great frenzy, the crows had come, flying and cawing as they spotted the object of their search. And suddenly, the mass of crows exploded.

It seemed that time had slowed. The crows were everywhere at once, snapping and clawing at tail feathers. Otulissa tried to navigate through all the mess of feathers, flying everywhere in the summer storm.

Then, she felt something warm among her talons, and twisted her head around.

_Good Glaux,_ she thought. Two-and-a-half tail feathers were torn cleanly off. A warm spurt of blood sprouted from her flesh, and a wave of nausea was overcoming her…


	4. Cleve?

_She was flying. Flying through the star-strewn sky, searching for the vines. Only one question pounded through her blood as she flew tirelessly. _Where are they?_ She thought she knew. She had just seen them. She was sure of it. All she had to do was keep flying on…_

_And on she flew, nearing the Great Sea of Hoolemere as her eyes searched frantically for what her heart desired. Her vines. _Soon now,_ she chided herself as she peered through the mist below and spied the Lobelian Current, straight as an arrow, course through the mass of ever-changing waves below her._

_She could see the looming shadow of the tree now… the great timber of the tree was now clear…the mass of entangled vines waved happily at her. She flew toward them, and…_

SLAP. _No! It cannot be! Had the vines, her precious vines, just slapped her in the face? It was not possible!_

Otulissa woke with a start as a squirming worm hit the left side of her face feathers with a resounding crack. She shuddered, remembering the uncanny resemblance the dream had held to this. And then, voices surrounded her…

"She moved!"

"Yes, I saw it too!"

"Thank Glaux she's alive."

"Yes, thank Glaux."

A shuffling of talons resounded in her ear slits as another owl came rushing through the infirmary at great speed, throwing the previous two owls out of the way. There were muffled shrieks and hoots on either side of Otulissa's bed as two _thumps_ hit the hollow floor.

"Otulissa! Are you alright?" came an urgent voice, "Oh my Glaux, I was so worried!"

Otulissa shifted her head and moaned. Pain came through all parts of her body, shooting through every fiber of her feathers, but she didn't notice, concentrating on the voice that had addressed her with such urgency. It sounded quite familiar…

"Otulissa?" It came again.

She recognized the voice, and opened her eyes. _Ahh…Cleve._

Cleve? What was _he_ doing here? She opened her eyes to full extent and scanned the room. The infirmary, no doubt, and all the other weather chaw members were here too, lying on either side of her were Soren and Ruby, and they too were groaning in pain. _Those crows are absolute hagsfiends!_ She thought to herself.

Seeing that she was awake, Cleve immediately began to slap more worms onto different parts of her body.

"Thank you," she murmured.

"Think nothing of it," he muttered, but blushed anyways. She grinned inwardly. Cleve was so naïve. Perhaps that was shy she didn't really like him. They were from two different worlds. _And_, she thought to herself once more, _he's got a weak mind that can easily be manipulated._

That was her last thought as she drifted off to sleep once more.


	5. I Miss My Vines

Sunlight of the afternoon sun fell through the sky port in the infirmary. Outside, clouds shifted lazily in the sun and the vines were still. Inside, an owl was in distress.

Otulissa was sweating profusely. Thick droplets of sweat emerged from her pores and grazed her damp feathers, leaving a musky smell within her nest. She felt sick, as if something was deprived from her.

She wanted to yarp, and did into the shallow basin beside her nest. A wet mass of seaweed erupted from her gizzard and fell with a slopping noise. _When did I ever swallow seaweed?_ She thought to herself, and, after going through a few random thoughts, came to the conclusion that she must have swallowed some by accident while flying in the storm.

She seized up when she gazed nonchalantly out the sky port. _Good Glaux._ She hadn't flown through her vines today. She hadn't even laid a feather among one green line today. No wonder she was sick.

Shifting her weight from wing to wing, Otulissa attempted to rise up from her nest, and received a sharp jolt of pain in her port wing. It vibrated through her body for a moment, and then ceased.

Doggedly, she tried to lift herself again, feeling another quick shock. Breathing heavily, she lay down again on the damp down, staring at the hollow roof, slightly delirious. How could this happen? _I'll have to endure this pain for the whole week._ She thought, feeling a sinking feeling in her gizzard. How will she survive this?

She peered out the opening again, and received another shock. Not from pain, though. Something had just whipped out of sight in the corner of the hole. Something silvery and gray.

_I must be hallucinating, though, funny, it did look like an owl of some kind… _She thought, and then fell asleep.

Twilight lighted down on a perch outside the infirmary hollow.

_I must have scared the nightlights out of her. _He thought, and chuckled a bit. Then, in all his seriousness, he grasped a sharp-edged stone and began sawing vigorously at a nearby branch of vine.

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See? I finally managed to put Twilight in there!

EG


	6. A Curious Gift

The sun, casting its last rays of sunlight, sunk down beneath the horizon. Otulissa, casting out her 70th sigh, sunk underneath her pillow of soft fog moss. Only about 10 hours had passed since her fall from grace. She was already facing depression.

Outside, the vines (drenched in the bloody red color of the sunset) waved gracefully at her, almost mocking her as she endured the pain coming from all parts of her restless body. Sickness washed over her as she, once again, brought out a clump of seaweed. Large retching noises issued from her parched beak as she yarped again and again, wishing desperately for a cup of milkberry tea. Matron had insisted to the little nurse owl (now sleeping fitfully by the hollow opening, her beak propped open in a most appalling manner) that Otulissa (or any others of the weather chaw) is to be given no liquids for the next day, as she had much to yarp out (Otulissa had moaned her disproval until she yarped, at which point Matron used her as an example as to what could happen and the little owl had nodded obediently).

Otulissa turned over in her nest, ignoring the violent jolts of pain coming from her starboard talon. She didn't want to set her eyes on that miserable little piece of wet poop, who had refused point-blank on giving her even a drop of water. She set her gaze upon what was to the left side of her nest, a little table that housed gifts that admirers would bring to the patients in the infirmary.

What was on that little table beside her nest was a most alarming object.

There, stuck haphazardly in a Ga'Hoole nut cup of clear water stood a clipping of the beautiful vines that shimmered outside. Why, even a miniscule berry was lodged on one of the budging silver knots!

And with it brought a slew of questions to the owl it was meant for.

Otulissa stood there, stunned. A mass of thoughts rammed through her brain, sending it on fire (a/n metaphorically speaking!).

Who would know? _How_ would they know? How would they know that she had yearned for these vines, since the beginning of her imprisonment in this wretched infirmary nest? How could they possibly know that this was the answer to her prayers, her undying passion?

Thoughts came rushing through, bewildered thoughts, impossible thoughts…and then, _someone is watching me,_ a part of her brain supplied, and immediately the image of a silvery blur flashing past outside the hollow's sky port swam into her mind's eye.

At that moment, her eyes landed upon a single silver feather lying beside the cup, on top of a rough piece of tanned vole hide. There was something scratched on there, but she couldn't exactly see it from her vantage point, no matter how far she stretched her neck muscles and twisted her face. _And it does hurt!_ She thought to herself, as pain enveloped her and that horrible throbbing in her head came back.

But Otulissa, being a most curious owl, braced herself, raised her body and, gathering all the strength she had, lunged forward, focusing on the table. _Just look and grab it…Just grab it…_she thought, and, with much speed, scooped up all of the occupants of the table and dumped them in her nest, careful not to spill a drop of the water onto the down feathers.

She peered into the scribbles on the paper and read the messy script with difficulty:

_I thought you might need this. The vines miss you deeply too._

Then, in turn, she looked at the feather, and upon recognizing its owner, fainted.

Outside the sky port of the infirmary perched a large silver owl. He was gazing intently at an owl inside the hollow. Upon seeing the effect of what he had implanted upon the owl when she was slumbering, he felt deeply agitated that he couldn't fly in at the moment. Oh well.

With a swift grin, he lifted off of his branch and flew away.


	7. Chasing Twilight

**A/N: Really, this isn't much. I couldn't think of anything to write and wanted to continue the story and I had to go over the plot for a long time before I got back into the story. I couldn't bear to see the story moved to # 22 on the list. So, here is a middle chapter that's really rambly and boring. **

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7. Chasing Twilight

The timber of the Great Ga'Hoole Tree rumbled through the air. The vines whispered softly in the wind. The sea was tumbling in great, rolling movements. It was a perfect day, and it was made more perfect by the release of Otulissa and the rest of the weather chaw. Matron had come back from her moss gathering mission in Silverveil and, upon hearing the faults of the little fish owl (who had tended the chaw) from Otulissa and Ruby, given her a rather large but sufficient flint mop.

In the dining hollow, tweener was being served. Cook had put in a special effort upon the liberation of the infirmary patients and whipped up some scrumptious milkberry cupcakes, each set with a delicious nootie in the center of the sweet milkberry icing. Otulissa was busy nibbling away and savoring her nootie, when she noticed someone standing silently on the edge of the hollow. Suddenly, her appetite was lost and she spat out the icing in her beak.

Twilight. The cause of all her troubles.

Otulissa twisted her head back to see his silvery gray figure and saw him staring intently at her. What peculiar behavior for an owl of action. So when Twilight noticed Otulissa glaring at him like he was the dirtiest wet pooper on earth, he shrugged limply and sloped off towards the hollow port, thrusting his wings and flying off into the deep lavender sky (sending a large breeze into the hollow and blowing the nearby young owls off their nest maid snakes).

Otulissa huffed angrily, "Such bad manners! Why, he deserves a flint mop!" She told the rest of the chaw, and then flew off after Twilight, through the sky port.

"Otulissa, wait!" Soren shreed after her, "It was just a little breeze!" It seemed ludicrous that Twilight would need a flint after just causing a rather large stir in the wind. Soren hoped that Otulissa wasn't really meaning it. _Perhaps she's been blown about too much in that gale._ He thought to himself.

But, in his gizzard, Soren knew that Otulissa wasn't just giving a flint mop. No, this was much more. He had sensed it in the air (hadn't Mrs. P always said he was half-snake?), a distinct vibe of dislike, some annoyance, between Twilight and Otulissa. Something was happening. He was sure of it.

"Twilight?" Otulissa called through the whistling winds between the vines of the Great Tree, "Twilight! Where are you?"

The winds began to pick up, and they slathered about through the air, buffeting Otulissa into a rather thick silver rope of vine. She screamed in surprise.

And then everything seemed to move into a faster pace. Her talons seemed to become entangled with the vines, her wings were beating rapidly against the wind, and Otulissa was thrust forcibly into a strange, vine-spun dream.

_A strange silvery membrane draped onto everything in Otulissa's line of vision, the snakelike vines, the plump, rotund berries, the dense bark of the tree, even the violet sky began to fuse into one single color: the light, merry silver._

_Otulissa felt, right then and there, entangled in the web of vines, like a prisoner of her own love. Locked in her own dream, the key being her love of vines. Jailed in a web that will keep tightening its hold on her until she was out of breath and still struggling to become free…_

_This was not to last, as Otulissa felt her gizzard being let loose, and a sudden wave of euphoria swept through her like the autumn breeze. She then began to dance in the wind with the rhythm of the swinging vines in her head, all previous thoughts forgotten. The only thing that mattered now was for the dance to never end, for it to go on forever, to never stop the thrumming winds, or the beating berries, or the beautiful silver ropes surrounding her, matching her every step in the air. Otulissa, once again, began to turn and twist in stimulating movements. She twirled and spun and dove and stepped with grace, never stopping. She would never become tired in this joyous moment…_

_So how did I end up in the infirmary once again?_ Otulissa though to herself, lying in her bed of moss. Luckily this time, though, Matron was here, and she had told Otulissa that her stay this time would be short and quick.

"Though I don't understand how you could become tangled in those tantalizing vines," Matron had muttered (more to herself than Otulissa), "personally, I think they should be severed and removed to elsewhere."

The thought of the vines being cut down brought a shiver to Otulissa's hollow bones.

So when her time in the infirmary was up, Otulissa bade Matron goodbye and told her that the vines were actually very healthy and that they have a great historical semblance in the well being of the Great Tree (in other words, she talked like only Otulissa could talk, and convinced Matron that, indeed, the vines were good and that they should never be cut down, and who ever did have the notion should deserve a mighty flint mop).

Then Otulissa made her way towards Twilight's hollow. She was going to have to sort this out.

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**A/N: You like? I know, my chapters are getting extremely repetitive. Please notify me of all grammar and spelling mistakes. Or just REVIEW, please? Oh yeah...I might be able to update in about, a week if I'm fast (and I'm usually pretty slow).**


	8. Dancing in the Vines

**The quote seems to be an INTERESTING comparison. I wonder is KL is reading my fanfics. XD**

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"_The tree without Otulissa's brilliance would be like the tree without the milkberry vines that sparkled in rainbow hues through the twelve cycles of the moon – unthinkable."_

_from Exile, Book 14_

Cleve had been searching for Otulissa everywhere.

He had stuck his head into hollow after hollow (one in which he managed to jar his entire port wing in), nest maid hole after hole. He ran through a milkberry pie in the kitchen and two of Soren's cute little owlets calling for Otulissa's name (Bash had started screeching for a hagsfiend), he flew through the Great Hall twice looking for the beautiful brown spots in the spotted owl's back, and slipped on another milkberry pie (cook was becoming rather annoyed), while tripping over a tweener nest maid.

And, finally abandoning search after crawling out of a sticky milkberry pie mix, Cleve sat down on a perch outside, exhausted and fuming.

He was going to propose to her today. He was going to ask Otulissa to be his mate so that they could live for eternity in happiness. And though Cleve knew he sounded extremely sappy, he would never give up until he had Otulissa. Sure, they were young and a world of a difference stood between them in countless ways, but Cleve's heart told him that they would achieve much more than a world with their combined differences. Two entirely estranged halves would be reunited to create a wonderful life, filled with utopious glory and many intelligent little owlets…

Or maybe not.

Cleve, drunk with his own self-hallucinatory visions, had glanced up into the vines of the Great Ga'Hoole Tree.

Frinkin' hagsmire.

Two lithe, elegant figures moved in synonymous perfection through the swaying ocean of vines. Cleve watched as the pair, harmoniously in sync, one a silvery gray and the other a lustrous brown, twist and turn, their movements precise and naturally complementing each other's image, all the while keeping time with the sway of the ropes.

Cleve knew, in that instant, that he had lost.

Otulissa and Twilight danced on, both of them unclear as to how they ended up in this little waltz. One minute the two were arguing as if there was no tomorrow, the next they had grabbed each other and lost themselves into the gentle rhythm of the vines.

Their hearts trembled in one indescribable sound that seemed to last for eternity. It was as if the vines had somehow tied a knot around their hearts, fastening its grip tighter and tighter as their dancing movements grew faster and faster…two lost souls joined together, in an earthen glaumora of serenity, wholeness, and unbelievable passion.

They danced and dance, until they collapsed on top of each other, all the while churring.

Cleve left the island that night, before breaklight.

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**A/N: So, yeah, I'm finally finished. YAY! I think I skipped a bunch of stuff, but I wanted to end this before it becomes more AU than I'll can handle. Trust me, I will turn this story around in a sequel, and make it not as AU/TWT as you think!**

**Just decided to end it.**

**Please review! I allow flamers!**

**Exile really brought this story to a finish. Cleve will be back in my fics, though!**


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